The Aam Aadmi Party, Mysuru unit has urged the Centre to financially support the State government for installing solar power pumps for the benefit of farmers.
For supplying free electricity to farmers, the State government was spending around ₹6,900 crores every year. There are about 34 lakh pump sets and it is estimated that an amount of ₹13,800 crores will be needed to replace them with solar pumps. If the Union government spends the remaining ₹6,900 crores, free solar pumps can be distributed to all farmers in the State, which benefits them to a large extent. At the same time, the State too can save on the subsidy extended for supplying electricity, said Aam Aadmi Party Mysuru district president Rangaiah.
In a statement here, he said that both State and union governments collect an equal amount of GST and hence must invest equally in the State’s development. It is unfair that the State should pay a subsidy of 50 per cent while the Union government offers only 30 per cent. When taxes are collected equally, it is necessary to pay out equally too, he argued.
If both State and union governments help distribute free solar pumps, it will save thousands of crores being spent to install solar farms he said.
When the present Chief Minister Siddaramaiah was in power in 2013-14 and Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar, who was then the Energy Minister, had said that they would help farmers with solar electricity generation in their farms but even after 10 years there is no information on the number of solar pump sets distributed in the State, he stated.
In 2017 the Union government had said that under KUSUM project 10,314 pump sets have been allotted to Karnataka and they would pay 30 per cent subsidy but so far only 314 pump sets have been delivered, he claimed.
“The scheme was only an eye-wash. The Prime Minister makes speeches saying that we should reduce pollution and generate clean energy etc., but no serious efforts are being made on the ground by the Centre,” he alleged.
